Kwity Paye, EDGE, Michigan
Another Big Ten pass rusher that would be impacted by a delay of the 2020 season to the fall is Michigan’s Kwity Paye. With the departure of Josh Uche to the New England Patriots, the Wolverines are looking to Paye and Aidan Hutchinson as the cornerstones of their pass rush in 2020. A bigger role would showcase what Paye brings to the table as an EDGE player.
What can he do? Last season Paye set a career-high mark with 6.5 sacks along with 12.5 tackles for a loss, appearing in 12 games along the Michigan defensive line. Paye is one of college football’s “freak” athletes, featured in the annual must-read from Bruce Feldman at The Athletic. In fact, he topped the list of 50 players, and in support of the ranking Feldman wrote:
He clocked the second-best 3-cone time on the team at a blistering 6.37 seconds, which would have topped anyone at the 2020 combine. Paye’s 40 is also moving at 4.57, with a solid 34-inch vertical and 30 reps on the bench press. Paye’s 40 time and 4.15 pro shuttle time are better than any D-lineman or edge player who tested at the 2020 combine. His 11.3 time in the 60-yard shuttle is also elite.
Now if Paye is forced into simply working out at the Scouting Combine next winter, those types of testing results could be enough to put him in the first round. But it sure would be nice if he had a year of dominant film available to pair with such impressive testing numbers.